"UK company wants to unleash genetically modified insects in the Keys, but residents fear not enough is known about the insects"

"A British company that has developed a genetically modified mosquito to resist the spread of dengue fever is coming up against growing opposition to a plan to release the insects into the Florida Keys.

A Change.org petition started by a woman in Key West opposing the release has garnered almost 90,000 signatures and rising. "Say no to genetically modified mosquitoes release," the petition demands.

Mila de Mier, the author of the petition, began the campaign because she said she was worried about the lack of scientific understanding of what the insects could do to the delicate ecosystem of the Florida Keys. She accused Oxitec, the UK-based biotech firm that has developed the mosquito, of failing to listen to local wishes."